Opposites Attract
by SweetHarmonee
Summary: Rufus met Aeris one cold night on the upper plate. He was leaving a nightclub and she was selling flowers on the street. (Reviews are always appreciated!)
1. Chapter 1

**Opposites Attract**_  
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_Butterflies? Only you can give me that feeling._

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My name is Rufus Shinra. I am only twenty years old, but I am the Vice President of the Shinra Electric Power Company. I had been on an extended assignment overseas, which was code for stuck on house arrest in Junon for betraying my own father. It had been a few years before President Shinra decided I could be trusted again and he had me flown into Midgar. It was certainly a cause for celebration.

Some of the other Shinra executives, some of the Turks, and I headed out to a popular dance club on the Upper Plate.

My name was called out over the speakers of the club, announcing my arrival to the city. Applause, cheers, and screams erupted from the crowds. Herds of women and girls swarmed our table after the announcement. Champagne continued to flow at our table. I could see myself getting used to the fame.

After hours of drinking and dancing, Scarlet and I headed towards the exit of the club. We were arm in arm as we stood on the curb of the street, shivering a bit from the cool breeze. Scarlet and I had always has a sort of flirtatious relationship. She caressed my arm as we waited for our private car to arrive.

"Hi!" The voice of a young woman greeted us.

There she stood. A young woman with luxurious long brown hair. Even tied back in a pink ribbon, her dark locks still graced her shoulders. Her lips were thin, almost delicate. She had joyful eyes that matched the shade of emeralds. She was rather beautiful. In fact, her beauty was exquisite, but she was dressed in a worn pink dress. Her red jacket had stains on it. Rugged brown boots graced her feet. A girl from the slums. I recognized that face from somewhere, but I couldn't imagine where from. She seemed awfully familiar, yet I couldn't place her. I would remember meeting someone with such beauty.

"Why don'tcha buy a flower for your pretty date, sir?" She asked me, lifting a small basket filled with flowers from the side of her slim waist. Her smile gleamed so brightly.

"I'd love a flower, Rufus." Scarlet encouraged, pushing her hip against me.

I didn't say a word, I just nodded.

Something about this young woman baffled me. Those emerald eyes had caught my attention in way I had never felt before. I had to have known her from somewhere. Where did I know her from? She handed over a flower to Scarlett. Wordlessly, I reached into my pocket for my wallet. I pulled a hundred gil out and placed it into the pretty flower girl's hand. Her hands were so soft, so delicate. Our car pulled up on the curb, and she looked down at the pile of gil in her hand. She looked up at me, those emerald orbs in shock.


	2. Chapter 2

**Opposites Attract**

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_Nobody has ever made me feel the way you do._

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Taking a sip of the strong cup of coffee, the snob in me couldn't help but think that I'd had better in Junon. I took another sip and began flipping through the newspaper at my table. It was a beautiful day outside and instead of taking part in strategy meetings for the Shinra Company, I'd decided walk down the street to a café. My father would be very pleased with me; avoiding the opportunity to be in meetings all day long, discussing Shinra issues. I'd rather sit and enjoy a mediocre cup of coffee.

I gazed out the window of the café. I was lost in my thoughts for a moment, just my thoughts and my cup of coffee. Suddenly that bright pink dress crossed my sight. She strolled across the street from the café. I rubbed my eyes in disbelief. It was the beautiful flower girl from last night. What were the odds that I'd ever see her again?

Quickly, I left some gil at the table for the waitress, put down my cup of coffee, and I threw down the newspaper. I dashed for the door. Once I was out on the street, I could still see her, but she was a bit further down the sidewalk and was about to turn the corner. She was out of my sight, but I sprinted down the street in the direction that she'd gone. I was almost hit by a car as raced across the street. Once I'd turned the corner, I scanned the street looking for her.

The pink dress caught my attention once again. She sat on park bench about a block down the street. I tried to contain my excitement as I slowed my strides, so eager to be walking in her direction. I approached the park – with the sun shining and the children out playing, it was almost as if it was worlds away from Midgar.

"Um. Hello." I greeted as I sat down beside the pretty flower girl who was seated on the bench.

She looked up at me with a kind smile. "Uh, hi."

"Those are beautiful flowers." I commented, noticing the flower basket beside her.

"…Thanks..." She replied, but sounded very unsure of herself.

"You don't remember me, do you?" I asked.

"No. I do." She nodded, turning herself to face me more. "You bought a flower from me last night. Thank you."

"Yes." I responded, a smile on my lips. I reached my hand out to her, "My name is Rufus. What's your name?"

"Aeris." She answered, taking my hand in hers for a very gentle shake. "Are you Rufus Shinra?"

"Yes, yes I am."

We rested on the bench for a while in silence and then she smiled. I smiled back upon seeing hers.

Sitting here on a park bench on a beautiful sunny afternoon, both of us sat smiling as if we were more than just complete strangers.

"Well, I have to get back to work…" Aeris spoke, grabbing her basket of flowers and standing up from the bench. She began to walk away.

"Can I buy another flower, Aeris?" I asked as I stood up and gently grabbed her arm. I just wanted to keep her around for a few more minutes.

"You don't have to do that." She turned towards me, shook her head, and replied cheerfully.

"I want to." I said, reaching into my pocket to grab as much gil as I could and stuffed it into her basket. She looked up at me with widened-eyes. It was only a couple hundred gil. Then I pulled a dainty yellow flower from the basket and held it up to my noise to inhale the sweet aroma. "Thank you, Aeris."

"You're welcome-e-e-e-e." She giggled, a blush reaching her cheeks.

I don't know what came over me, but I put my hands around her shoulders and pulled her closer. Then I took one of my hands and placed it at her chin, forcing her to look up at me. I was so tempted to kiss her. I knew it wasn't polite to kiss her, I didn't know what I was thinking, but I just had to. Slowly, I leaned down to place my lips to hers.

Her lips were so soft. So sweet. She began kissing me back, but it was only a few seconds before she pulled away.

"I have to go…." She whispered, her cheeks were a bright shade of pink.

"I understand if you never want to see me again, but if you do, please meet me here tomorrow at this time. I'd really enjoy taking you out sometime - on a date."

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**Author's Note****:**_ Do you like my unusual pairing? Should I just give up while I'm ahead? What do you think of my writing? What do I need to work on? Constructive criticism please!_


	3. Chapter 3

**Opposites Attract**

_... and I fell for you really fast._

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That night, after I kissed Aeris, I couldn't sleep. I tossed and turned in bed all night – my anxiety and excitement were so built up.

I was so excited for the morning, completely and utterly ecstatic.

As soon as the sunrise peaked through my windows, I jumped excitedly out of bed. It was only six in the morning, but I made my way over to the telephone in the kitchen of my loft. Punching in the numbers for my maid, I tapped my feet happily like a child.

"Hello?" The voice of a tired sounding middle aged woman came through the other receiver.

"Isn't it a beautiful morning, Mena?" I greeted, with happiness within the tone in my voice. It was a tone that I barely recognized myself, I could only imagine how it must have caught Mena off-guard. I continued without a response from her, "My apologizes for calling at such an early hour, but I'll need you to run some errands for me. These errands are of the utmost importance. This is a very urgent matter."

"Yes, Mr. Shinra." Mena replied.

Then I began to ramble on, listing a variety of groceries I needed from the store. I had also requested she bring me some additional items.

While I waited for Mena to arrive, I decided to get ready for the day. After having a cup of coffee and briefly watching the news, I made my way to the shower. Today I put extra effort into combing my hair perfectly, flossing between my teeth, and I even dapped on cologne I only used for special occasions.

The clock continued to tick as I waited for Mena and this did nothing but give myself time to rattle my own nerves. My mind began to wonder- What if Aeris doesn't like this white suit? Maybe I should have dressed in something a little more casual. What if Aeris doesn't like the smell of this cologne? What if Aeris didn't like my plan for our date? What if it suddenly rains? What if I show up at the park today and Aeris isn't even there? As I sat alone, silent in the living room of my loft, my palms began to sweat and my heart started to beat rapidly.


	4. Chapter 4

**Opposites Attract**

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_If love was a storybook, we'd meet on the very first page_

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As I walked towards the park and spotted that very recognizable pink dress, there was a newfound spring in my step. With a picnic basket in hand and a blanket underneath my arm, I found myself walking faster with each step. The anticipation of being in her presence was a feeling like no other I'd felt before.

Aeris was knelt down at the playground, handing out flowers to the children. She does the most adorable things without even realizing it. Once I reached the edge of the playground, I stood there just admiring her beauty for a moment. Her kindness with those children was even more admirable then her incredibly captivating figure. She was beautiful, but not just superficially like all the other girls. She was beautiful in the way she made others smile. She was beautiful for the joyful light that shined in her eyes. She was beautiful, all the way deep down to her soul.

Aeris turned and looked up at me, a bright smile widening across her face. Her smile instantly melted my heart.

I made a little motion, a wave for her to come over.

After giving a few of the children hugs, she began walking towards me.

"Hi!" She smiled. It was such a short greeting, such a simple little word. But it is how my love for her started.

"Hello!" I exclaimed, holding up the picnic basket and blanket. "Care to join me?"

We strolled over towards an open patch of grass near a tree in the park. After deciding that it was the perfect place to sit, I set down the picnic basket and quickly laid out the checkered blanket on the grass.

"My lady, after you." I spoke with a smile as I held out my hand in a gesture to help her sit down. She took my hand and I could feel my heart flutter. As I sat next to her on the blanket, the butterflies inside me raced even more.

Feeling the nervous feeling start to set in, I tried to avoid it by focusing on the food. Reaching into the woven picnic basket I pulled out a few containers of food and a few utensils. As I began setting the containers down on the blanket, Aeris curiously began opening the boxes to peek inside.

We began to eat the fruit and vegetable platters that Mena had prepared for us. After a few minutes of light conversation, I let my curiosity about Aeris get the best of me. This need to know everything about her compelled me to ask questions I normally would not have.

"I want to know everything about you. What you were like as a child, how you acquired each scar, did you have any favorite games when you were younger? Just talk. I'll listen."

As she spoke and began to tell me all of her stories, I couldn't help but notice how wonderfully sweet her voice was. There wasn't anything wonderfully amazing about her childhood stories, but there was something about her voice that I couldn't resist. Her voice was absolutely intoxicating and her laugh was enchanting.

I sat quietly and tried to listen as she spoke, nodding here and there in response to some of the things she said, but I was so easily distracted by the way her face glowed whenever she reached a part of a story and a smile graced her lips.

"It's not polite to stare, ya know." Aeris teased playfully, noticing my lack of attention.

"Can you blame me?"

"Yes!" She exclaimed in a playful tone. "Geez, for someone that's supposed to be so classy, you'd think you'd have some manners."

We sat in contented silence for a while, both of us admiring the peaceful scenery of the park. This was such a happy day. We were in a beautiful park in the middle of a massive city, yet it felt as if we were worlds away from the cars and politics and stress and busyness of it all.

"Rufus do you like me?" Those joyful, green eyes stared into my face full with curiosity.

"Define "like"?"

"My mother used to read me stories when I was a little girl, and in those stories the bad guy is always really easy to see. You know? He doesn't show up at some park with a picnic basket, ready to make you laugh, with his perfect blonde hair."

My eyes widened in shock. "Who says I'm the bad guy?"

"You're the Vice President of Shinra. If that doesn't scream villain, I don't know what else does. I love the planet, our planet, and everything beautiful that comes from her. Your company is killing our planet. I like you, and this is so wrong. "

"But that's just my occupation, just a status that I was born into nonetheless. I could care less about all the politics, wealth, meetings, or any of that. If I had a reason to give it all up, I would."

Aeris giggled softly, looking up at me with those glittering eyes. "Sure you would."

"Would you like a little honesty? May I talk now and you just listen?" I asked without really waiting for reply. "It's quite unusual for me to be here today, like this. I am not usually this romantic guy. I have never believed in love, because I don't believe in illogical things like love, or watching sunsets, or wishing on shooting stars. And you already know about my wealth." I took her hand in mine, focusing my gaze on her when I spoke again. "Not once in my life, and never in my life, will I ever have to want for anything material thing. But I want you." I shifted my gaze from her eyes down at our intertwined fingers. "Something about you makes me think differently."

Aeris' ever present smile was her only reply. She lay down on the blanket, facing the sky, and she motioned for me to lie beside her. We lay there for many moments, watching wordlessly in contentment as the clouds danced across the blue sky. Taking in all the sounds of the park, from the laughter of children to the birds chirping, I wondered if happiness and simplicity could really exist hand in hand.

I took her delicate hand and held it softly in mine.

She looked over towards me and smiled warmly.

"Aeris, when I first saw you, I fell in love with you. It goes against everything in my nature. I don't know how, I don't know why. I just did."


End file.
